Editorials

Digital Transformation

By Stephen Conroy

THE transformation in the
communications sector is much broader than investment in high speed broadband
and the challenge of designing appropriate regulations around it.

We
are in the early phase of a transformation of the entire media broadcasting
landscape. New waves of technology are driving convergence in the ability of
networks to provide a broader array of services; and for market structures to
change.

One
core part of this transformation is the switchover that is currently underway
from analogue to digital TV.The
switch to digital television will free up scarce spectrum, which can be used
for new communications services, such as high speed wireless broadband.

This
is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for Australia to take advantage of this
important economic infrastructure. This spectrum is known as the digital
dividend, and realisation of the digital dividend is a key element of the
Government’s broader communications policies.

In
January, I released the Digital Dividend Green Paper which set out the
Government’s objective to reclaim 126mhz currently used for analog television
broadcasts. Submissions on the green paper closed last month. Importantly, the
submissions showed that there is widespread support across the broadcasting and
communications sectors for achieving the Government’s target dividend.

In
order to achieve this dividend, we need to switch from analogue to digital TV.
When I was last here, I signalled the Government’s intention for the switch to
digital television to be completed by the end of 2013. I am pleased to report
there has been much progress.We
are just 79 days away from the first region in Australia – Mildura / Sunrayasia
– switching to digital-only TV.

The
Digital Switchover Taskforce has been working effectively and cooperatively
with broadcasters to undertake the planning needed to switch off analog TV.

There
is a great deal of technical and legislative work going on behind the scenes to
get ready for the switch to digital, but for the viewer, the most obvious
change is the arrival of new TV channels.

Since
the Government announced the end date for analog TV, Australia’s free-to-air
commercial broadcasters have embraced the opportunity to provide new services
to their audiences - all have launched digital-only multi-channels over the
last 18 months.

In
a country as vast and as sparsely populated as Australia, the provision of
communications services in rural and remote areas has always been a particular
challenge. In January, the Government announced that as part of the switch to
digital television we will be funding a new satellite service. This service
will finally bring to viewers across the country the television services long
enjoyed by urban Australians. Legislation introduced into Parliament last month
will underpin the new satellite service.The new service will also provide viewers with access to their local
news – something the existing analog satellite service does not do.

Supporting
industry to enable creativity and responsiveness, sustaining Australian content
and prioritising the needs of the audience, is at the centre of the
Government’s approach to media policy.

It
is why we have strongly backed Australia’s national broadcasters, the ABC and
SBS. A healthy and diverse media needs both commercial and national broadcasters
to play strong roles, engaging in creative pursuits and fostering competitive
tension.

Last
year, in the middle of the most significant global economic downturn in 75
years, the Government was able to give the ABC its biggest funding boost since
it was incorporated in 1983, and to find new funding for SBS to produce more
local content.

This
funding increase has already seen the arrival of the long-awaited ABC
children’s channel, and is being leveraged throughout regional Australia to
produce user-generated content and provide online media education to regional
communities through the ‘ABC Open’ project. Later this year it will also see
the new 24-hour news channel launched on the ABC.

Across
the broadcasting and media sectors we are seeing significant transformation,
and once again reform is needed to keep up with this change.

In
our discussion paper on telecommunications reform for the 21st Century, the
Government flagged its intention to consider the overall regulatory framework
for communications services in a converged environment. As I have said
previously, regulatory issues such as media diversity, ownership controls,
audience reach rules and local content obligations will all need to be
re-visited.

The
Government’s policies, particularly in creating the NBN and pursuing the switch
to digital only television, have rapidly accelerated the arrival of the
convergent media age in Australia after years of delay. It is crucial that the
appropriate regulatory settings are in place to foster competition, encourage
diversity, inspire creativity and protect Australian voices.

I
believe that when history is written on the significance of the changes
underway in the communications sector, it will be compared with the industrial
revolution, in its transformative impact on society.

I
agree with the proposition that it’s difficult to appreciate rapid progress
when you’re in the middle of it – but looking back highlights just how dramatic
the changes have been.

Only
10 short years ago:

·Just over 1 in 2
people had a mobile phone, mainly for calls, and ‘texting’ was considered
cutting edge.

·Mass market
broadband services were in their infancy and few people even knew what it was.

·There was no
i-Phone, let alone the thousands of applications that come with it.

·There were no
digital TV multi-channels and the idea of watching TV on demand was something
we heard about overseas.

·And of course, the
pioneers of Youtube, Twitter and Facebook were still penniless nerds, yet to
make their mark.

I’ll be one of the first in
line for the new i-Pad when it arrives in Australia later this month, but I’ve
got no doubt that in another 10 years, someone else will be standing here using
it to highlight how times have changed.

The
transformation currently underway in the media and communications sector is
unprecedented in this country. Never before in the modern era have we
experienced such sweeping changes in one sector.

The
opportunities presented by this transformation will be spectacular and we need
to make sure Australia can take advantage of them.

It’s
why the Rudd Government is investing in the foundations for this transformation
to the digital economy in the future.

And
it’s why reforming communications to drive and shape this transformation is so
important.

Excerpt from a speech by
Communications Minister Senator Hon Stephen Conroy to The Sydney Institute, 12 April
2010